Robbery should serve as lesson

Victim says 'elderly people need to stand up for themselves.'

Victim says 'elderly people need to stand up for themselves.'

October 22, 2006|TOM MOOR Tribune Staff Writer

SOUTH BEND -- Natalia Winnicki was robbed earlier this month of her engagement band, her watch and $1,100 in cash. But more importantly, Winnicki feels she was robbed of some of her security. "I'm going to be 71 next month, and here I am getting robbed," she said last week. "Elderly people need to stand up for themselves." Winnicki wanted to share her unsettling experience in hopes that other senior citizens will keep an eye out for robbers and thieves, and realize it could happen to them. And it could happen while just standing in a parking lot and returning a greeting to a stranger. Winnicki, who lives in Constantine, drives to the Wal-Mart on Portage Road in South Bend about once every two months with her 22-year-old granddaughter. The two usually do some shopping, and they also get their hair cut by the same stylist they have used for years. This was one trip to South Bend she won't likely forget. Winnicki had finished her shopping about 7:30 p.m. Oct. 4 and decided to empty her shopping cart in her car, while her granddaughter was using the restroom. Winnicki was parked in front of the store in a handicapped spot. She said she had just finished emptying the cart when a woman walked up to her and said, 'Hi.'" "I said, 'Hi,' back," Winnicki said. "I thought she was getting ready to take the cart because I was finished with it," she said. Instead, the woman jerked Winnicki's purse out of the front of the cart. The assailant then got in her van parked one spot in front of Winnicki's and drove away "like a bat out of hell" while she stood in shock. The shopping cart was knocked over with Winnicki still holding it, leaving her with bruises to her arms, hands and legs. "Other people saw what happened, but they just watched in amazement because they couldn't believe it, either," she said. Police were able to locate Winnicki's purse about a week after the robbery on Sample Street, but the watch with a 14-karat gold band, the one-karat engagement band, money and two of her ATM cards were missing. She said that about a half hour after the robbery, the robber tried to use her ATM card at a couple of different locations, but the assailant didn't know the pin number to get access to any money. Winnicki said the assailant was a woman likely in her 20s who was driving a silver-colored van. Winnicki thinks it's highly unlikely she will ever recover any of her belongings -- including the watch she bought in 1986. "I also had personal pictures and things you just cannot replace in the purse," she said. She estimates the total value of the items stolen -- including the cash -- is in excess of $5,000. She said she had that much cash on her because she was holding $800 for her granddaughter who was going to look into buying a car. She also had more than $300 she had recently received from Social Security. Winnicki hopes her story serves as a lesson. "I just think some people don't stop to think that this could happen," she said. "But people should be made aware of these things." The assailant also has Winnicki's keys, which have not been recovered. "I changed all the locks on my doors," she said. "They have the keys to my car and, who knows, they could drive off with it. "It's a total nightmare. I cannot believe somebody would have the kind of guts to do this." Winnicki still plans on making her trips to Wal-Mart -- like she would anywhere else -- but she is going to keep a closer eye on her surroundings from now on. "I don't want to say this is going to happen just at Wal-Mart; it could happen at any shopping center," she said. "People need to be alert where ever they are. Maybe my story won't help, but people could think, 'Hey, I remember seeing that' and keep an eye on it. "Somebody's got to stop these jerks."Staff writer Tom Moor: tmoor@sbtinfo.com (574) 235-6187